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Privy Council (United Kingdom)

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His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council
AbbreviationPrivy Council, PC
Predecessor
Formation1 January 1801 (1801-01-01)
Legal statusAdvisory body
Membership
Members of the Privy Council
Charles III
(King-in-Council)
Penny Mordaunt
Richard Tilbrook
Ceri King
Staff
Privy Council Office
Websiteprivycouncil.gov.uk

The Privy Council (PC), officially His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its membership mainly comprises senior politicians who are current or former members of either the House of Commons or the House of Lords.

The Privy Council formally advises the sovereign on the exercise of the Royal Prerogative, and as a body corporate (as King-in-Council) it issues executive instruments known as Orders in Council which, among other powers, enact Acts of Parliament. The Council also holds the delegated authority to issue Orders of Council, mostly used to regulate certain public institutions. The Council advises the sovereign on the issuing of Royal Charters, which are used to grant special status to incorporated bodies, and city or borough status to local authorities. Otherwise, the Privy Council's powers have now been largely replaced by its executive committee, the Cabinet of the United Kingdom.

Certain judicial functions are also performed by the King-in-Council, although in practice its actual work of hearing and deciding upon cases is carried out day-to-day by the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council. The Judicial Committee consists of senior judges appointed as privy counsellors: predominantly justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and senior judges from the Commonwealth. The Privy Council formerly acted as the High Court of Appeal for the entire British Empire (other than for the United Kingdom itself). It continues to hear judicial appeals from some other independent Commonwealth countries, as well as Crown Dependencies and British Overseas Territories.

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House of Commons of the United Kingdom

House of Commons of the United Kingdom

The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the upper house, the House of Lords, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. The House of Commons is an elected body consisting of 650 members known as members of Parliament (MPs). MPs are elected to represent constituencies by the first-past-the-post system and hold their seats until Parliament is dissolved.

House of Lords

House of Lords

The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by appointment, heredity or official function. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England.

Executive (government)

Executive (government)

The executive, also referred as the executive branch or executive power, is the term commonly used to describe that part of government which enforces the law, and has overall responsibility for the governance of a state.

City status in the United Kingdom

City status in the United Kingdom

City status in the United Kingdom is granted by the monarch of the United Kingdom to a select group of communities. As of 22 November 2022, there are 76 cities in the United Kingdom—55 in England, seven in Wales, eight in Scotland, and six in Northern Ireland. Although it carries no special rights, the status of city can be a marker of prestige and confer local pride.

Borough status in the United Kingdom

Borough status in the United Kingdom

Borough status is granted by royal charter to local government districts in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The status is purely honorary, and does not give any additional powers to the council or inhabitants of the district. In Scotland, similarly chartered communities were known as royal burghs, although the status is no longer granted.

Cabinet of the United Kingdom

Cabinet of the United Kingdom

The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the senior decision-making body of His Majesty's Government. A committee of the Privy Council, it is chaired by the prime minister and its members include secretaries of state and other senior ministers.

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council

The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 August 1833 to hear appeals formerly heard by the King-in-Council, the Privy Council formerly acted as the court of last resort for the entire British Empire, other than for the United Kingdom itself.

Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom

Justice of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom

Justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom are the judges of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom other than the president and the deputy president. The Supreme Court is the highest court of the United Kingdom for civil and criminal matters in the jurisdictions of England and Wales and Northern Ireland. Judges are appointed by the King on the advice of the Prime Minister, who receives recommendations from a selection commission.

Commonwealth of Nations

Commonwealth of Nations

The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Commonwealth Secretariat, which focuses on intergovernmental aspects, and the Commonwealth Foundation, which focuses on non-governmental relations among member states. Numerous organisations are associated with and operate within the Commonwealth.

British Empire

British Empire

The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts established by England between the late 16th and early 18th centuries. At its height it was the largest empire in history and, for over a century, was the foremost global power. By 1913, the British Empire held sway over 412 million people, 23 per cent of the world population at the time, and by 1920, it covered 35.5 million km2 (13.7 million sq mi), 24 per cent of the Earth's total land area. As a result, its constitutional, legal, linguistic, and cultural legacy is widespread. At the peak of its power, it was described as "the empire on which the sun never sets", as the Sun was always shining on at least one of its territories.

Crown Dependencies

Crown Dependencies

The Crown Dependencies are three island territories in the British Islands that are self-governing possessions of the British Crown: the Bailiwick of Guernsey, the Bailiwick of Jersey, and the Isle of Man. They are not part of the United Kingdom (UK) nor are they British Overseas Territories. They have the status of "territories for which the United Kingdom is responsible", rather than sovereign states. As a result, they are not member states of the Commonwealth of Nations. However, they do have relationships with the Commonwealth and other international organisations, and are members of the British–Irish Council. They have their own teams in the Commonwealth Games.

British Overseas Territories

British Overseas Territories

The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remnants of the former British Empire and do not form part of the United Kingdom itself. The permanently inhabited territories are internally self-governing, with the United Kingdom retaining responsibility for defence and foreign relations. Three of the territories are inhabited, chiefly or only, by a transitory population of military or scientific personnel. All but one of the rest are listed by the UN Special Committee on Decolonization as non-self-governing territories. All fourteen have the British monarch as head of state. These UK government responsibilities are assigned to various departments of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and are subject to change.

History

The Privy Council of the United Kingdom, created on 1 January 1801, was preceded by the Privy Council of Scotland, the Privy Council of England, and the Privy Council of Great Britain (1708–1800). The key events in the formation of the modern Privy Council are given below:

In Anglo-Saxon England, Witenagemot was an early equivalent to the Privy Council of England. During the reigns of the Norman monarchs, the English Crown was advised by a royal court or curia regis, which consisted of magnates, ecclesiastics and high officials. The body originally concerned itself with advising the sovereign on legislation, administration and justice.[1] Later, different bodies assuming distinct functions evolved from the court. The courts of law took over the business of dispensing justice, while Parliament became the supreme legislature of the kingdom.[2] Nevertheless, the Council retained the power to hear legal disputes, either in the first instance or on appeal.[3] Furthermore, laws made by the sovereign on the advice of the Council, rather than on the advice of Parliament, were accepted as valid.[4] Powerful sovereigns often used the body to circumvent the Courts and Parliament.[4] For example, a committee of the Council—which later became the Court of the Star Chamber—was during the 15th century permitted to inflict any punishment except death, without being bound by normal court procedure.[5] During Henry VIII's reign, the sovereign, on the advice of the Council, was allowed to enact laws by mere proclamation. The legislative pre-eminence of Parliament was not restored until after Henry VIII's death.[6] The nineteen-member council by 1540 had become a new national institution, likely, the creation of Thomas Cromwell without exact definitions of its powers.[7] Though the royal Council retained legislative and judicial responsibilities, it became a primarily administrative body.[8] The Council consisted of forty members in 1553,[9] whereas Henry VII swore over a hundred servants to his council.[10] Sovereigns relied on a smaller working committee which evolved into the modern Cabinet.

By the end of the English Civil War, the monarchy, House of Lords, and Privy Council had been abolished. The remaining parliamentary chamber, the House of Commons, instituted a Council of State to execute laws and to direct administrative policy. The forty-one members of the Council were elected by the House of Commons; the body was headed by Oliver Cromwell, de facto military dictator of the nation. In 1653, however, Cromwell became Lord Protector, and the Council was reduced to between thirteen and twenty-one members, all elected by the Commons. In 1657, the Commons granted Cromwell even greater powers, some of which were reminiscent of those enjoyed by monarchs. The Council became known as the Protector's Privy Council; its members were appointed by the Lord Protector, subject to Parliament's approval.[11]

In 1659, shortly before the restoration of the monarchy, the Protector's Council was abolished.[11] Charles II restored the Royal Privy Council, but he, like previous Stuart monarchs, chose to rely on a small group of advisers.[12] The formation of the Kingdom of Great Britain in 1707 combined the Privy Councils of England and Scotland, the latter body coming to an end in 1708.

Under George I even more power transferred to a small committee of the Council, which began to meet in the absence of the sovereign, communicating its decisions to him after the fact. Thus, the Privy Council, as a whole, ceased to be a body of important confidential advisers to the Sovereign; the role passed to a committee of the Council, now known as the Cabinet.[13]

With the creation of the United Kingdom on 1 January 1801, a single Privy Council was created for Great Britain and Ireland, although the Irish Privy Council continued to exist until 1922.

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Privy Council of England

Privy Council of England

The Privy Council of England, also known as His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, was a body of advisers to the sovereign of the Kingdom of England. Its members were often senior members of the House of Lords and the House of Commons, together with leading churchmen, judges, diplomats and military leaders.

Privy Council of Scotland

Privy Council of Scotland

The Privy Council of Scotland was a body that advised the Scottish monarch. In the range of its functions the council was often more important than the Estates in the running the country. Its registers include a wide range of material on the political, administrative, economic and social affairs of the Kingdom of Scotland. The council supervised the administration of the law, regulated trade and shipping, took emergency measures against the plague, granted licences to travel, administered oaths of allegiance, banished beggars and gypsies, dealt with witches, recusants, Covenanters and Jacobites and tackled the problem of lawlessness in the Highlands and the Borders.

English law

English law

English law is the common law legal system of England and Wales, comprising mainly criminal law and civil law, each branch having its own courts and procedures.

Kingdom of Scotland

Kingdom of Scotland

The Kingdom of Scotland was a sovereign state in northwest Europe traditionally said to have been founded in 843. Its territories expanded and shrank, but it came to occupy the northern third of the island of Great Britain, sharing a land border to the south with England. It suffered many invasions by the English, but under Robert the Bruce it fought a successful War of Independence and remained an independent state throughout the late Middle Ages. Following the annexation of the Hebrides and the Northern Isles from Norway in 1266 and 1472 respectively, and the final capture of the Royal Burgh of Berwick by England in 1482, the territory of the Kingdom of Scotland corresponded to that of modern-day Scotland, bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the southwest. In 1603, James VI of Scotland became King of England, joining Scotland with England in a personal union. In 1707, during the reign of Queen Anne, the two kingdoms were united to form the Kingdom of Great Britain under the terms of the Acts of Union.

Kingdom of England

Kingdom of England

The Kingdom of England existed on the island of Great Britain from about 927, when it emerged from various Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, until 1 May 1707, when it united with Scotland to form the Kingdom of Great Britain.

Kingdom of Great Britain

Kingdom of Great Britain

The Kingdom of Great Britain was a sovereign country in Western Europe from 1 May 1707 to the end of 31 December 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of Union 1707, which united the kingdoms of England and Scotland to form a single kingdom encompassing the whole island of Great Britain and its outlying islands, with the exception of the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. The unitary state was governed by a single parliament at the Palace of Westminster, but distinct legal systems – English law and Scots law – remained in use.

Norman Conquest

Norman Conquest

The Norman Conquest was the 11th-century invasion and occupation of England by an army made up of thousands of Norman, Breton, Flemish, and French troops—all led by the Duke of Normandy, later styled William the Conqueror.

Royal court

Royal court

A royal court, often called simply a court when the royal context is clear, is an extended royal household in a monarchy, including all those who regularly attend on a monarch, or another central figure. Hence, the word "court" may also be applied to the coterie of a senior member of the nobility. Royal courts may have their seat in a designated place, several specific places, or be a mobile, itinerant court.

Curia regis

Curia regis

Curia regis is a Latin term meaning "royal council" or "king's court". It was the name given to councils of advisers and administrators in medieval Europe who served kings, including kings of France, Norman kings of England and Sicily, kings of Poland and the kings and queens of Scotland.

Magnate

Magnate

The magnate term, from the late Latin magnas, a great man, itself from Latin magnus, "great", means a man from the higher nobility, a man who belongs to the high office-holders, or a man in a high social position, by birth, wealth or other qualities in Western Christian countries since the medieval period. It also includes the members of the higher clergy, such as bishops, archbishops and cardinals. In reference to the medieval, the term is often used to distinguish higher territorial landowners and warlords, such as counts, earls, dukes, and territorial-princes from the baronage, and in Poland for the richest szlachta.

Justice

Justice

Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspectives, including the concepts of moral correctness based on ethics, rationality, law, religion, equity and fairness. The state will sometimes endeavor to increase justice by operating courts and enforcing their rulings.

Parliament of England

Parliament of England

The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advised the English monarch. Great councils were first called Parliaments during the reign of Henry III. By this time, the king required Parliament's consent to levy taxation.

Functions

The sovereign exercises executive authority by making Orders in Council upon the advice of the Privy Council. Orders-in-Council, which are drafted by the government rather than by the sovereign, are secondary legislation and are used to make government regulations and to make government appointments. Furthermore, Orders-in-Council are used to grant royal assent for laws passed by the legislatures of British Crown Dependencies,[14] and were used to grant royal assent for Measures of the National Assembly for Wales.[15][16]

Orders of Council, distinct from Orders-in-Council, are issued by members of the Privy Council without requiring the approval of the sovereign. They are issued under the specific authority of Acts of Parliament, and most commonly are used for the regulation of public institutions.[14]

The sovereign also grants royal charters on the advice of the Privy Council. Charters bestow special status to incorporated bodies; they are used to grant "chartered" status to certain professional, educational or charitable bodies, and sometimes also city and borough status to towns.[17] The Privy Council therefore deals with a wide range of matters, which also includes university and livery company statutes,[18] churchyards,[19] coinage and the dates of bank holidays.[20] The Privy Council formerly had sole power to grant academic degree-awarding powers and the title of university,[21] but following the Higher Education and Research Act 2017 these powers have been transferred to the Office for Students for educational institutions in England.[22]

Notable orders

The Civil Service is formally governed by Privy Council Orders, as an exercise of the Royal Prerogative. One such order implemented HM Government's ban of GCHQ staff from joining a trade union.[23][24]

Another, the Civil Service (Amendment) Order in Council 1997, permitted the Prime Minister to grant up to three political advisers management authority over some Civil Servants.[25][26]

In the 1960s, the Privy Council made an order to evict the 2,000 inhabitants of the 65-island Chagos Archipelago in the Indian Ocean, in preparation for the establishment of a joint United States–United Kingdom military base on the largest outlying island, Diego Garcia, some 60 miles (97 km) distant. In 2000, the High Court of Justice ruled that the inhabitants had a right to return to the archipelago.

In 2004, the Privy Council, under Jack Straw's tenure, overturned the ruling. In 2006, the High Court of Justice found the Privy Council's decision to be unlawful. Justice Kentridge stated that there was no known precedent "for the lawful use of prerogative powers to remove or exclude an entire population of British subjects from their homes and place of birth",[25][27][28] and the Court of Appeal were persuaded by this argument, but the Law Lords of the Appellate Committee of the House of Lords found the original decision to be flawed and overturned the ruling by a 3–2 decision, thereby upholding the terms of the Order in Council.[29]

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Royal assent

Royal assent

Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in others that is a separate step. Under a modern constitutional monarchy, royal assent is considered little more than a formality. Even in nations such as the United Kingdom, Norway, the Netherlands, Liechtenstein and Monaco which still, in theory, permit their monarch to withhold assent to laws, the monarch almost never does so, except in a dire political emergency or on advice of government. While the power to veto by withholding royal assent was once exercised often by European monarchs, such an occurrence has been very rare since the eighteenth century.

Crown Dependencies

Crown Dependencies

The Crown Dependencies are three island territories in the British Islands that are self-governing possessions of the British Crown: the Bailiwick of Guernsey, the Bailiwick of Jersey, and the Isle of Man. They are not part of the United Kingdom (UK) nor are they British Overseas Territories. They have the status of "territories for which the United Kingdom is responsible", rather than sovereign states. As a result, they are not member states of the Commonwealth of Nations. However, they do have relationships with the Commonwealth and other international organisations, and are members of the British–Irish Council. They have their own teams in the Commonwealth Games.

Royal charter

Royal charter

A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta of 1215, but since the 14th century have only been used in place of private acts to grant a right or power to an individual or a body corporate. They were, and are still, used to establish significant organisations such as boroughs, universities and learned societies.

City status in the United Kingdom

City status in the United Kingdom

City status in the United Kingdom is granted by the monarch of the United Kingdom to a select group of communities. As of 22 November 2022, there are 76 cities in the United Kingdom—55 in England, seven in Wales, eight in Scotland, and six in Northern Ireland. Although it carries no special rights, the status of city can be a marker of prestige and confer local pride.

Borough

Borough

A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term borough designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely.

Livery company

Livery company

There are 110 livery companies, comprising London's ancient and modern trade associations and guilds, almost all of which are styled the 'Worshipful Company of' their respective craft, trade or profession. These livery companies play a significant part in the life of the City of London, not least by providing charitable-giving and networking opportunities. Liverymen retain voting rights for the senior civic offices, such as the Lord Mayor, Sheriffs and Corporation, its ancient municipal authority with extensive local government powers.

Churchyard

Churchyard

In Christian countries a churchyard is a patch of land adjoining or surrounding a church, which is usually owned by the relevant church or local parish itself. In the Scots language and in both Scottish English and Ulster-Scots, this can also be known as a kirkyard.

Bank holiday

Bank holiday

A bank holiday is a national public holiday in the United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland and the Crown Dependencies. The term refers to all public holidays in the United Kingdom, be they set out in statute, declared by royal proclamation or held by convention under common law.

University

University

A university is an institution of higher education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, the designation is reserved for colleges that have a graduate school.

Higher Education and Research Act 2017

Higher Education and Research Act 2017

The Higher Education and Research Act 2017 was enacted into law in the United Kingdom by the Houses of Parliament on 27 April 2017. It is intended to create a new regulatory framework for higher education, increase competition and student choice, ensure students receive value for money, and strengthen the research sector.

Office for Students

Office for Students

The Office for Students (OfS) is a non-departmental public body of the Department for Education, acting as the regulator and competition authority for the higher education sector in England.

Civil Service (United Kingdom)

Civil Service (United Kingdom)

His Majesty's Home Civil Service, also known as His Majesty's Civil Service, the Home Civil Service, or colloquially as the Civil Service, is the permanent bureaucracy or secretariat of Crown employees that supports His Majesty's Government, which is led by a cabinet of ministers chosen by the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, as well as two of the three devolved administrations: the Scottish Government and the Welsh Government, but not the Northern Ireland Executive.

Committees

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.
Judicial Committee of the Privy Council.

The Privy Council has committees:[30]

Baronetage Committee

The Baronetage Committee was established by a 1910 Order in Council, during Edward VII's reign, to scrutinise all succession claims (and thus reject doubtful ones) to be placed on the Roll of Baronets.[30]

Committee for the Affairs of Jersey and Guernsey

The Committee for the Affairs of Jersey and Guernsey recommends approval of Channel Islands legislation.[30]

Committee for the Purposes of the Crown Office Act 1877

The Committee for the purposes of the Crown Office Act 1877 consists of the Lord Chancellor and Lord Privy Seal as well as a secretary of state. The Committee, which last met in 1988, is concerned with the design and usage of wafer seals.[30]

Executive Committee

The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the executive committee of the Privy Council and the senior decision-making body of British Government.[31]

Judicial Committee

The Judicial Committee serves as the final court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries, military sovereign base areas and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. The Judicial Committee also hears very occasional appeals from a number of ancient and ecclesiastical courts. These include the Church Commissioners, the Arches Court of Canterbury, the Chancery Court of York, prize courts, the High Court of Chivalry, and the Court of Admiralty of the Cinque Ports. This committee usually consists of members of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom and senior judges of the Commonwealth of Nations who are Privy Counsellors.

Within the United Kingdom, the Judicial Committee hears appeals from ecclesiastical courts, the Admiralty Court of the Cinque Ports, Prize Courts and the Disciplinary Committee of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, appeals against schemes of the Church Commissioners and appeals under certain Acts of Parliament (e.g., the House of Commons Disqualification Act 1975).[32] The Crown-in-Council was formerly the supreme appellate court for the entire British Empire,[33] but a number of Commonwealth countries have now abolished the right to such appeals.[34] The Judicial Committee continues to hear appeals from several Commonwealth countries, from British Overseas Territories, Sovereign Base Areas and Crown Dependencies.[32] The Judicial Committee had direct jurisdiction in cases relating to the Scotland Act 1998, the Government of Wales Act 1998 and the Northern Ireland Act 1998, but this was transferred to the new UK Supreme Court in 2009.[35]

Scottish Universities Committee

The Scottish Universities Committee considers proposed amendments to the statutes of Scotland's four ancient universities.[30]

Universities Committee

The Universities Committee, which last met in 1995, considers petitions against statutes made by Oxford and Cambridge universities and their colleges.[30]

Other committees

In addition to the standing committees, ad hoc committees are notionally set up to consider and report on petitions for royal charters of Incorporation and to approve changes to the bye-laws of bodies created by royal charter.[30]

Committees of privy counsellors are occasionally established to examine specific issues. Such committees are independent of the Privy Council Office and therefore do not report directly to the lord president of the council.[30] Examples of such committees include:[30]

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Edward VII

Edward VII

Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India, from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910.

Channel Islands

Channel Islands

The Channel Islands are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, which is the largest of the islands; and the Bailiwick of Guernsey, consisting of Guernsey, Alderney, Sark, Herm and some smaller islands. They are considered the remnants of the Duchy of Normandy and, although they are not part of the United Kingdom, the UK is responsible for the defence and international relations of the islands. The Crown dependencies are not members of the Commonwealth of Nations, nor have they ever been in the European Union. They have a total population of about 171,916, and the bailiwicks' capitals, Saint Helier and Saint Peter Port, have populations of 33,500 and 18,207, respectively.

Great Seal of the Realm

Great Seal of the Realm

The Great Seal of the Realm or Great Seal of the United Kingdom is a seal that is used to symbolise the Sovereign's approval of state documents.

Lord Chancellor

Lord Chancellor

The lord chancellor, formally the lord high chancellor of Great Britain, is the highest-ranking traditional minister among the Great Officers of State in Scotland and England in the United Kingdom, nominally outranking the prime minister. The lord chancellor is appointed by the sovereign on the advice of the prime minister. Prior to their Union into the Kingdom of Great Britain, there were separate lord chancellors for the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland; there were lord chancellors of Ireland until 1922.

Cabinet of the United Kingdom

Cabinet of the United Kingdom

The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the senior decision-making body of His Majesty's Government. A committee of the Privy Council, it is chaired by the prime minister and its members include secretaries of state and other senior ministers.

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council

Judicial Committee of the Privy Council

The Judicial Committee of the Privy Council (JCPC) is the highest court of appeal for the Crown Dependencies, the British Overseas Territories, some Commonwealth countries and a few institutions in the United Kingdom. Established on 14 August 1833 to hear appeals formerly heard by the King-in-Council, the Privy Council formerly acted as the court of last resort for the entire British Empire, other than for the United Kingdom itself.

Crown Dependencies

Crown Dependencies

The Crown Dependencies are three island territories in the British Islands that are self-governing possessions of the British Crown: the Bailiwick of Guernsey, the Bailiwick of Jersey, and the Isle of Man. They are not part of the United Kingdom (UK) nor are they British Overseas Territories. They have the status of "territories for which the United Kingdom is responsible", rather than sovereign states. As a result, they are not member states of the Commonwealth of Nations. However, they do have relationships with the Commonwealth and other international organisations, and are members of the British–Irish Council. They have their own teams in the Commonwealth Games.

British Overseas Territories

British Overseas Territories

The British Overseas Territories (BOTs), also known as the United Kingdom Overseas Territories (UKOTs), are fourteen territories with a constitutional and historical link with the United Kingdom. They are the last remnants of the former British Empire and do not form part of the United Kingdom itself. The permanently inhabited territories are internally self-governing, with the United Kingdom retaining responsibility for defence and foreign relations. Three of the territories are inhabited, chiefly or only, by a transitory population of military or scientific personnel. All but one of the rest are listed by the UN Special Committee on Decolonization as non-self-governing territories. All fourteen have the British monarch as head of state. These UK government responsibilities are assigned to various departments of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and are subject to change.

Commonwealth of Nations

Commonwealth of Nations

The Commonwealth of Nations, simply referred to as the Commonwealth, is a political association of 56 member states, the vast majority of which are former territories of the British Empire. The chief institutions of the organisation are the Commonwealth Secretariat, which focuses on intergovernmental aspects, and the Commonwealth Foundation, which focuses on non-governmental relations among member states. Numerous organisations are associated with and operate within the Commonwealth.

Church Commissioners

Church Commissioners

The Church Commissioners is a body which administers the property assets of the Church of England. It was established in 1948 and combined the assets of Queen Anne's Bounty, a fund dating from 1704 for the relief of poor clergy, and of the Ecclesiastical Commissioners formed in 1836. The Church Commissioners are a registered charity regulated by the Charity Commission for England and Wales, and are liable for the payment of pensions to retired clergy whose pensions were accrued before 1998.

Arches Court

Arches Court

The Arches Court, presided over by the Dean of Arches, is an ecclesiastical court of the Church of England covering the Province of Canterbury. Its equivalent in the Province of York is the Chancery Court.

Chancery Court of York

Chancery Court of York

The Chancery Court of York is an ecclesiastical court for the Province of York of the Church of England. It receives appeals from consistory courts of dioceses within the province. The presiding officer, the Official Principal and Auditor, has been the same person as the Dean of the Arches since the nineteenth century. The court comprises the auditor, two clergy, and two laity, as for the Court of the Arches in the Province of Canterbury. The registrar is distinct, however, and is at present Louise Connacher.

Membership

Composition

Caricature by Thomas Rowlandson titled Privy Council of a King (1815);  throned is George IV, then Prince Regent.
Caricature by Thomas Rowlandson titled Privy Council of a King (1815); throned is George IV, then Prince Regent.

The Sovereign, when acting on the Council's advice, is known as the King-in-Council or Queen-in-Council, depending on the sex of the reigning monarch.[36] The members of the Council are collectively known as The Lords of His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council[37] (sometimes The Lords and others of ...).[38] The chief officer of the body is the Lord President of the Council, who is the fourth-highest Great Officer of State,[39] a Cabinet member and normally, either the Leader of the House of Lords or of the House of Commons.[40] Another important official is the Clerk, whose signature is appended to all orders made in the Council.[41]

Both Privy Counsellor and Privy Councillor may correctly be used to refer to a member of the Council. The former, however, is preferred by the Privy Council Office,[42] emphasising English usage of the term Counsellor as "one who gives counsel", as opposed to "one who is a member of a council". A Privy Counsellor is traditionally said to be "sworn of" the Council after being received by the sovereign.[43]

The sovereign may appoint any person as a Privy Counsellor,[44] but in practice, appointments are made only on the advice of His Majesty's Government. The majority of appointees are senior politicians, including ministers of the Crown, the leader of the main opposition party, the leader of the third-largest party in the House of Commons, the heads of the devolved administrations, and senior politicians from Commonwealth countries. Besides these, the Council includes a small number of members of the Royal Family, some senior British and Commonwealth judges, some senior clergy, and a small number of senior civil servants.

There is no statutory limit to the membership of the Privy Council.[45] Members have no automatic right to attend all Privy Council meetings, and only some are summoned regularly to meetings (in practice at the Prime Minister's discretion).

The Church of England's three senior bishops – the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Archbishop of York[45] and the Bishop of London[46] – become privy counsellors upon appointment. Senior members of the Royal Family may also be appointed, but this is confined to the Monarch's consort, heir apparent, and heir apparent's spouse.[45] The Private Secretary to the Sovereign is always appointed a Privy Counsellor,[47] as are the Lord Chamberlain, the Speaker of the House of Commons, and the Lord Speaker. Justices of the Supreme Court of the United Kingdom,[48] judges of the Court of Appeal of England and Wales,[49] senior judges of the Inner House of the Court of Session (Scotland's highest law court)[50] and the Lord Chief Justice of Northern Ireland[51] also join the Privy Council ex officio.

The balance of Privy Counsellors is largely made up of politicians. The Prime Minister, Cabinet ministers and the Leader of HM Opposition are traditionally sworn into the Privy Council upon appointment.[45] Leaders of major parties in the House of Commons, first ministers of the devolved administrations,[52] some senior ministers outside Cabinet, and on occasion other respected senior parliamentarians are appointed privy counsellors.

Because Privy Counsellors are bound by oath to keep matters discussed at Council meetings secret, the appointment of the leaders of opposition parties as privy counsellors allows the Government to share confidential information with them "on Privy Council terms".[45] This usually only happens in special circumstances, such as in matters of national security. For example, Tony Blair met Iain Duncan Smith (then Leader of HM Opposition) and Charles Kennedy (then Leader of the Liberal Democrats) "on Privy Council terms" to discuss the evidence for Iraq's weapons of mass destruction.[53]

Members from other Commonwealth realms

Although the Privy Council is primarily a British institution, officials from some other Commonwealth realms are also appointed.[45] By 2000, the most notable instance was New Zealand, whose prime minister, senior politicians, chief justice and Court of Appeal justices were traditionally appointed privy counsellors.[54] However, appointments of New Zealand members have since been discontinued. The prime minister, the speaker, the governor-general and the chief justice are still accorded the style Right Honourable, but without membership of the Council.[55] Until the late 20th century, the prime ministers and chief justices of Canada and Australia were also appointed privy counsellors.[56][57] Canada also has its own Privy Council, the King's Privy Council for Canada (see below). Prime ministers of some other Commonwealth countries that retain the King as their sovereign continue to be sworn of the Council.[45]

Meetings

Queen Victoria convened her first Privy Council on the day of her accession in 1837.
Queen Victoria convened her first Privy Council on the day of her accession in 1837.

Meetings of the Privy Council are normally held once each month wherever the Sovereign may be in residence at the time.[20] The quorum, according to the Privy Council Office, is three,[58] though some statutes provide for other quorums (for example, section 35 of the Opticians Act 1989[59] provides for a lower quorum of two).

The Sovereign attends the meeting, though their place may be taken by two or more Counsellors of State.[60][61] Under the Regency Acts 1937 to 1953 and the Counsellors of State Act 2022,[62] Counsellors of state may be chosen from among the sovereign's spouse, the four individuals next in the line of succession who are over 21 years of age (18 for the first in line), Prince Edward and Princess Anne.[61] Customarily the sovereign remains standing at meetings of the Privy Council, so that no other members may sit down,[42] thereby keeping meetings short. The lord president reads out a list of orders to be made, and the sovereign merely says "Approved".[63]

Few Privy Counsellors are required to attend regularly. The settled practice is that day-to-day meetings of the Council are attended by four Privy Counsellors, usually the relevant minister to the matter(s) pertaining.[60] The Cabinet Minister holding the office of Lord President of the Council invariably presides.[64] Under Britain's modern conventions of parliamentary government and constitutional monarchy, every Order-in-Council is drafted by a government department and has already been approved by the minister responsible – thus actions taken by the King-in-Council are formalities required for validation of each measure.[60]

Full meetings of the Privy Council are held only when the reigning Sovereign announces their own engagement (which last happened on 23 November 1839,[65] in the reign of Queen Victoria); or when there is a Demise of the Crown, either by the death or abdication of the Monarch.[53] A full meeting of the Privy Council was also held on 6 February 1811, when the Prince of Wales was sworn in as regent by Act of Parliament.[66] The current statutes regulating the establishment of a regency in the case of minority or incapacity of the sovereign also require any regents to swear their oaths before the Privy Council.[67]

In the case of a Demise of the Crown, the Privy Council – together with the Lords Spiritual, the Lords Temporal, the Lord Mayor of the City of London and Court of Aldermen of the City of London as well as representatives of Commonwealth realms – makes a proclamation declaring the accession of the new Sovereign and receives an oath from the new Monarch relating to the security of the Church of Scotland, as required by law.[68] It is also customary for the new Sovereign to make an allocution to the Privy Council on that occasion, and this Sovereign's Speech is formally published in The London Gazette. Any such Special Assembly of the Privy Council, convened to proclaim the accession of a new Sovereign and witness the Monarch's statutory oath, is known as an Accession Council. The last such meeting was held on 10 September 2022 following the death of Elizabeth II and the accession of Charles III.[69]

Term of office

Membership is conferred for life. Formerly, the death of a monarch ("demise of the Crown") brought an immediate dissolution of the council, as all Crown appointments automatically lapsed.[70] By the 18th century, it was enacted that the council would not be dissolved until up to six months after the demise of the Crown.[71] By convention, however, the sovereign would reappoint all members of the council after its dissolution.[72][73] In practice, therefore, membership continued without a break.[45] In 1901, the law was changed to ensure that Crown appointments became wholly unaffected by any succession of monarch.[74]

The sovereign, however, may remove an individual from the Privy Council. Former MP Elliot Morley was expelled on 8 June 2011, following his conviction on charges of false accounting in connection with the British parliamentary expenses scandal.[75][76] Before this, the last individual to be expelled from the Council was Sir Edgar Speyer, Bt., who was removed on 13 December 1921[77][78] for collaborating with the enemy German Empire, during the First World War.[79]

Individuals can choose to resign, sometimes to avoid expulsion. Three members voluntarily left the Privy Council in the 20th century: John Profumo,[79] who resigned on 26 June 1963;[80][81] John Stonehouse,[79] who resigned on 17 August 1976[80][82] and Jonathan Aitken, who resigned on 25 June 1997[83] following allegations of perjury.[79][84]

So far, four Privy Counsellors have resigned in the 21st century, three in the same year. On 4 February 2013, Chris Huhne announced that he would voluntarily leave the Privy Council after pleading guilty to perverting the course of justice.[85] Lord Prescott stood down on 6 July 2013, in protest against delays in the introduction of press regulation, expecting others to follow.[86] Denis MacShane resigned on 9 October 2013, before an Old Bailey hearing at which he pleaded guilty of false accounting and was subsequently imprisoned.[87][88] In April 2022, former Prime Minister of Jamaica P. J. Patterson resigned to make the case for Jamaica to become a republic.[89]

Rights and privileges

The Privy Council as a whole is termed "The Most Honourable" whilst its members individually, the Privy Counsellors, are entitled to be styled "The Right Honourable".[90] Nonetheless, some nobles automatically have higher styles: non-royal dukes are styled "The Most Noble", and marquesses as "The Most Honourable". Modern custom as recommended by Debrett's is to use the post-nominal letters "PC" in a social style of address for peers who are Privy Counsellors.[91] For commoners, "The Right Honourable" is sufficient identification of their status as a Privy Counsellor and they do not use the post-nominal letters "PC".[54][91][92] The Ministry of Justice revises current practice of this convention from time to time.[93]

Each Privy Counsellor has the right of personal access to the sovereign. Peers were considered to enjoy this right individually; members of the House of Commons possess the right collectively. In each case, personal access may only be used to tender advice on public affairs.[94]

Only Privy Counsellors can signify Royal Consent to the examination of a Bill affecting the rights of the Crown.[95]

Members of the Privy Council are privileged to be given advance notice of any prime ministerial decision to commit HM Armed Forces in enemy action.[96]

Privy Counsellors have the right to sit on the steps of the Sovereign's Throne in the Chamber of the House of Lords during debates, a privilege which was shared with heirs apparent of those hereditary peers who were to become members of the House of Lords before Labour's partial Reform of the Lords in 1999, diocesan bishops of the Church of England yet to be Lords Spiritual, retired bishops who formerly sat in the House of Lords, the Dean of Westminster, Peers of Ireland, the Clerk of the Crown in Chancery, and the Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod.[97] While Privy Counsellors have the right to sit on the steps of the Sovereign's Throne they do so only as observers and are not allowed to participate in any of the workings of the House of Lords. Nowadays this privilege is rarely exercised. A notable recent instance of the exercising of this privilege was used by the Prime Minister, Theresa May, and David Lidington, who watched the opening of the debate of the European Union (Notification of Withdrawal) Bill 2017 in the House of Lords.[98]

Privy Counsellors are accorded a formal rank of precedence, if not already having a higher one.[99] At the beginning of each new Parliament, and at the discretion of the Speaker, those members of the House of Commons who are Privy Counsellors usually take the oath of allegiance before all other members except the Speaker and the Father of the House (who is the member of the House who has the longest continuous service).[100] Should a Privy Counsellor rise to speak in the House of Commons at the same time as another Honourable Member, the Speaker usually gives priority to the "Right Honourable" Member.[101] This parliamentary custom, however, was discouraged under New Labour after 1998, despite the government not being supposed to exert influence over the Speaker.[102]

Oath and initiation rite

Viviana Radcliffe examined by the Earl of Salisbury and the Privy Council in the Star Chamber. Illustration by George Cruikshank from William Harrison Ainsworth's novel Guy Fawkes.
Viviana Radcliffe examined by the Earl of Salisbury and the Privy Council in the Star Chamber. Illustration by George Cruikshank from William Harrison Ainsworth's novel Guy Fawkes.

The oath of the king's council (later the Privy Council) was first formulated in the early thirteenth century. This oath went through a series of revisions, but the modern form of the oath was essentially settled in 1571.[103] It was regarded by some members of the Privy Council as criminal, and possibly treasonous, to disclose the oath administered to privy counsellors as they take office.[104] However, the oath was officially made public by the Blair Government in a written parliamentary answer in 1998, as follows.[105] It had also previously been read out in full in the House of Lords during debate by Lord Rankeillour on 21 December 1932,[106] and has been openly printed in full in widely published books during the 19th and 20th centuries.[107]

You do swear by Almighty God to be a true and faithful Servant unto the King's Majesty, as one of His Majesty's Privy Council. You will not know or understand of any manner of thing to be attempted, done, or spoken against His Majesty's Person, Honour, Crown, or Dignity Royal, but you will lett and withstand the same to the uttermost of your Power, and either cause it to be revealed to His Majesty Himself, or to such of His Privy Council as shall advertise His Majesty of the same. You will, in all things to be moved, treated, and debated in Council, faithfully and truly declare your Mind and Opinion, according to your Heart and Conscience; and will keep secret all Matters committed and revealed unto you, or that shall be treated of secretly in Council. And if any of the said Treaties or Counsels shall touch any of the Counsellors, you will not reveal it unto him, but will keep the same until such time as, by the Consent of His Majesty, or of the Council, Publication shall be made thereof. You will to your uttermost bear Faith and Allegiance unto the King's Majesty; and will assist and defend all Jurisdictions, Pre-eminences, and Authorities, granted to His Majesty, and annexed to the Crown by Acts of Parliament, or otherwise, against all Foreign Princes, Persons, Prelates, States, or Potentates. And generally in all things you will do as a faithful and true Servant ought to do to His Majesty. So help you God.[105]

Privy counsellors can choose to affirm their allegiance in similar terms, should they prefer not to take a religious oath.[108] At the induction ceremony, the order of precedence places Anglicans (being those of the established church) before others.[109]

The initiation ceremony for newly appointed privy counsellors is held in private, and typically requires kneeling on a stool before the Sovereign and then kissing hands.[110][111] According to The Royal Encyclopaedia: "The new Privy Counsellor or Minister will extend his or her right hand, palm upwards, and, taking the Queen's hand lightly, will kiss it with no more than a touch of the lips."[111] The ceremony has caused difficulties for Privy Counsellors who advocate republicanism; Tony Benn said in his diaries that he kissed his own thumb, rather than the Queen's hand, while Jeremy Corbyn reportedly did not kneel.[111] Not all members of the Privy Council go through the initiation ceremony; appointments are frequently made by an Order in Council, although it is "rare for a party leader to use such a course."[112]

Discover more about Membership related topics

List of current members of the British Privy Council

List of current members of the British Privy Council

This is a list of the current members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, along with the roles they fulfil and the date when they were sworn of the council. As of March 2023, there are 742 members on the council. Throughout this article, the prefix The Rt Hon. is omitted, because every counsellor bears it, as is the postnominal PC, as every counsellor who is also a peer uses it.

Caricature

Caricature

A caricature is a rendered image showing the features of its subject in a simplified or exaggerated way through sketching, pencil strokes, or other artistic drawings. Caricatures can be either insulting or complimentary, and can serve a political purpose, be drawn solely for entertainment, or for a combination of both. Caricatures of politicians are commonly used in editorial cartoons, while caricatures of movie stars are often found in entertainment magazines.

King-in-Council

King-in-Council

The King-in-Council or the Queen-in-Council, depending on the gender of the reigning monarch, is a constitutional term in a number of states. In a general sense, it would mean the monarch exercising executive authority, usually in the form of approving orders, on the advice of the country's executive council.

Lord President of the Council

Lord President of the Council

The lord president of the Council is the presiding officer of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom and the fourth of the Great Officers of State, ranking below the Lord High Treasurer but above the Lord Keeper of the Privy Seal. The Lord President usually attends and is responsible for chairing the meetings of the Privy Council, presenting business for the approval of the sovereign. In the modern era, the incumbent is by convention always a member of one of the Houses of Parliament, and the office is normally a Cabinet position.

Cabinet of the United Kingdom

Cabinet of the United Kingdom

The Cabinet of the United Kingdom is the senior decision-making body of His Majesty's Government. A committee of the Privy Council, it is chaired by the prime minister and its members include secretaries of state and other senior ministers.

Clerk of the Privy Council (United Kingdom)

Clerk of the Privy Council (United Kingdom)

The Clerk of the Privy Council is a senior civil servant in His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom, being Head of the Privy Council Office.

Counsel

Counsel

A counsel or a counsellor at law is a person who gives advice and deals with various issues, particularly in legal matters. It is a title often used interchangeably with the title of lawyer.

Powers of the prime minister of the United Kingdom

Powers of the prime minister of the United Kingdom

The powers of the prime minister of the United Kingdom come from several sources of the UK constitution, including both statute and constitutional convention, but not one single authoritative document. They have been described as "...problematic to outline definitively."

Church of England

Church of England

The Church of England is the established Christian church in England. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain by the 3rd century and to the 6th-century Gregorian mission to Kent led by Augustine of Canterbury. Its adherents are called Anglicans.

Archbishop of Canterbury

Archbishop of Canterbury

The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justin Welby, who was enthroned at Canterbury Cathedral on 21 March 2013. Welby is the 105th in a line which goes back more than 1400 years to Augustine of Canterbury, the "Apostle to the English", sent from Rome in the year 597. Welby succeeded Rowan Williams.

Archbishop of York

Archbishop of York

The archbishop of York is a senior bishop in the Church of England, second only to the archbishop of Canterbury. The archbishop is the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of York and the metropolitan bishop of the province of York, which covers the northern regions of England as well as the Isle of Man.

Bishop of London

Bishop of London

The bishop of London is the ordinary of the Church of England's Diocese of London in the Province of Canterbury. By custom the Bishop is also Dean of the Chapel Royal since 1723.

Other councils

The Privy Council is one of the four principal councils of the sovereign. The other three are the courts of law, the Commune Concilium (Common Council, i.e. Parliament) and the Magnum Concilium (Great Council, i.e. the assembly of all the peers of the realm). All are still in existence, or at least have never been formally abolished, but the Magnum Concilium has not been summoned since 1640 and was considered defunct even then.[94][113]

Several other privy councils have advised the sovereign. England and Scotland once had separate privy councils (the Privy Council of England and Privy Council of Scotland). The Acts of Union 1707 united the two countries into the Kingdom of Great Britain and in 1708 the Parliament of Great Britain abolished the Privy Council of Scotland.[114][115] Thereafter there was one Privy Council of Great Britain sitting in London.[116] Ireland, on the other hand, continued to have a separate Privy Council even after the Act of Union 1800. The last appointments to the Privy Council of Ireland were made in 1922, when the greater part of Ireland separated from the United Kingdom. It was succeeded by the Privy Council of Northern Ireland, which became dormant after the suspension of the Parliament of Northern Ireland in 1972.[117]

Canada has had its own Privy Council—the King's Privy Council for Canada—since 1867.[118] While the Canadian Privy Council is specifically "for Canada", the Privy Council discussed above is not "for the United Kingdom"; to clarify the ambiguity where necessary, the latter was traditionally referred to as the Imperial Privy Council. Equivalent organs of state in other Commonwealth realms, such as Australia and New Zealand, are called Executive Councils.[119][120]

Discover more about Other councils related topics

History of the courts of England and Wales

History of the courts of England and Wales

Certain former courts of England and Wales have been abolished or merged into or with other courts, and certain other courts of England and Wales have fallen into disuse.

Magnum Concilium

Magnum Concilium

In the Kingdom of England, the Magnum Concilium was an assembly historically convened at certain times of the year when the English baronage and church leaders were summoned to discuss the affairs of the country with the king. In the 13th century, the Great Council was superseded by the Parliament of England, which had developed out of the council. The Great Council was last summoned by Charles I in 1640.

Privy Council of England

Privy Council of England

The Privy Council of England, also known as His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, was a body of advisers to the sovereign of the Kingdom of England. Its members were often senior members of the House of Lords and the House of Commons, together with leading churchmen, judges, diplomats and military leaders.

Acts of Union 1707

Acts of Union 1707

The Acts of Union were two Acts of Parliament: the Union with Scotland Act 1706 passed by the Parliament of England, and the Union with England Act 1707 passed by the Parliament of Scotland. They put into effect the terms of the Treaty of Union that had been agreed on 22 July 1706, following negotiation between commissioners representing the parliaments of the two countries. By the two Acts, the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland—which at the time were separate states with separate legislatures, but with the same monarch—were, in the words of the Treaty, "United into One Kingdom by the Name of Great Britain".

Kingdom of Great Britain

Kingdom of Great Britain

The Kingdom of Great Britain was a sovereign country in Western Europe from 1 May 1707 to the end of 31 December 1800. The state was created by the 1706 Treaty of Union and ratified by the Acts of Union 1707, which united the kingdoms of England and Scotland to form a single kingdom encompassing the whole island of Great Britain and its outlying islands, with the exception of the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands. The unitary state was governed by a single parliament at the Palace of Westminster, but distinct legal systems – English law and Scots law – remained in use.

Parliament of Great Britain

Parliament of Great Britain

The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in May 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland. The Acts ratified the treaty of Union which created a new unified Kingdom of Great Britain and created the parliament of Great Britain located in the former home of the English parliament in the Palace of Westminster, near the City of London. This lasted nearly a century, until the Acts of Union 1800 merged the separate British and Irish Parliaments into a single Parliament of the United Kingdom with effect from 1 January 1801.

Kingdom of Ireland

Kingdom of Ireland

The Kingdom of Ireland was a monarchy on the island of Ireland that was a client state of England and then of Great Britain. It existed from 1542 until 1801. It was ruled by the monarchs of England and then of Great Britain, and administered from Dublin Castle by a viceroy appointed by the English king: the Lord Deputy of Ireland. It had a parliament, composed of Anglo-Irish and native nobles. From 1661 until 1801, the administration controlled an army. A Protestant state church, the Church of Ireland, was established. Although styled a kingdom, for most of its history it was, de facto, an English dependency. This status was enshrined in Poynings' Law and in the Declaratory Act of 1719.

Privy Council of Ireland

Privy Council of Ireland

His or Her Majesty's Privy Council in Ireland, commonly called the Privy Council of Ireland, Irish Privy Council, or in earlier centuries the Irish Council, was the institution within the Dublin Castle administration which exercised formal executive power in conjunction with the chief governor of Ireland, who was viceroy of the British monarch. The council evolved in the Lordship of Ireland on the model of the Privy Council of England; as the English council advised the king in person, so the Irish council advised the viceroy, who in medieval times was a powerful Lord Deputy. In the early modern period the council gained more influence at the expense of the viceroy, but in the 18th century lost influence to the Parliament of Ireland. In the post-1800 United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Irish Privy Council and viceroy Lord Lieutenant had formal and ceremonial power, while policy formulation rested with a Chief Secretary directly answerable to the British cabinet. The council comprised senior public servants, judges, and parliamentarians, and eminent men appointed for knowledge of public affairs or as a civic honour.

Irish Free State

Irish Free State

The Irish Free State was a state established in December 1922 under the Anglo-Irish Treaty of December 1921. The treaty ended the three-year Irish War of Independence between the forces of the Irish Republic – the Irish Republican Army (IRA) – and British Crown forces.

Privy Council of Northern Ireland

Privy Council of Northern Ireland

The Privy Council of Northern Ireland is a formal body of advisors to the sovereign and was a vehicle for the monarch's prerogative powers in Northern Ireland. It was modelled on the Privy Council of Ireland.

Parliament of Northern Ireland

Parliament of Northern Ireland

The Parliament of Northern Ireland was the home rule legislature of Northern Ireland, created under the Government of Ireland Act 1920, which sat from 7 June 1921 to 30 March 1972, when it was suspended because of its inability to restore order during The Troubles, resulting in the introduction of Direct Rule. It was abolished under the Northern Ireland Constitution Act 1973.

King's Privy Council for Canada

King's Privy Council for Canada

The King's Privy Council for Canada, sometimes called His Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or simply the Privy Council (PC), is the full group of personal consultants to the monarch of Canada on state and constitutional affairs. Practically, the tenets of responsible government require the sovereign or his viceroy, the governor general of Canada, to almost always follow only that advice tendered by the Cabinet: a committee within the Privy Council composed usually of elected members of Parliament. Those summoned to the KPC are appointed for life by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister of Canada, meaning that the group is composed predominantly of former Cabinet ministers, with some others having been inducted as an honorary gesture. Those in the council are accorded the use of an honorific style and post-nominal letters, as well as various signifiers of precedence.

Source: "Privy Council (United Kingdom)", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2023, March 19th), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Privy_Council_(United_Kingdom).

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